DALLAS >> Doc Rivers walked toward center court after his Clippers scored in the first half, and he couldn’t express his excitement in printable verbiage.

Jamal Crawford drove toward the right side of the basket, and as soon as the defense collapsed, he dumped the ball to Marreese Speights for an easy layup.

The play was so pretty, Rivers was about to break one of the Ten Commandments.

“(Expletive),” he muttered to himself. “That’s nice.”

Play after play, moment after moment, the Clippers looked as how you’d expect the best team in the NBA’s West to look when playing the conference’s worst. They defended, they scored and they won – by a lot – starting their six-game road trip with an easy 124-104 blowout victory.

If the score or the Clippers’ 14 wins in 16 games isn’t enough to convince you this team is humming, the details on Wednesday should.

There was the moment at the end of the first half when J.J. Redick and Blake Griffin had a 2-on-0 fastbreak. Instead of dropping the ball off for a thunderous Griffin dunk, Redick took the most fundamental of layups, causing both players to start laughing.

“At the end of the day, it’s our – we call it ‘cooperation’ — our ability to cooperate right now,” Rivers said.

In the third quarter, it happened again. Redick and Chris Paul weren’t on the same page on one play, Redick and the point guard engaged in a quick shouting match. On the very next possession, the Clippers got a stop and Paul hit Redick in transition for a 3, forcing a Dallas timeout.

“When things are clicking, the offense, the pace is right,” Paul said. “The defense? We’re communicating and covering each other’s backs. And, the tempo is right.”

In a matter of seconds, the issue was dealt with and resolved, with the Clippers padding their already sizable lead.

The Clippers actually trailed by eight early after the starting five couldn’t get going on the offensive or defensive end. But, after a hot start, the Mavericks cooled down and the starters climbed back in the game.

The Clipper bench, now full with Wesley Johnson back for the second game after missing time with a heel injury, was spectacular and quickly flipped any momentum.

Austin Rivers scored nine points in the first quarter including a pair of 3’s in a 4-second span right at the end of the quarter to put the Clippers ahead for good.

He finished with six made 3’s – one less than he’d made in the previous 15 games this season.

“It was just a matter of time,” Austin Rivers said. “You continue to shoot the ball.”

Seven different Clippers scored at least 10 points led by Austin Rivers’ 22. Chris Paul scored 18, DeAndre Jordan, playing in front of a hostile Dallas crowd, had 16 and eight rebounds and Griffin had 12 points, seven assists and six rebounds.